PC Parts Selection

[FoldedGalaxy393]

Hi, I'm looking to build a new gaming pc.  I have been an avid computer gamer for a long time.  For the last several years, I have been playing my Steam games on an iMac 21.5" that has been boot camped to split the hard drive between the Mac OS and Windows 7.  Right now, I am considering going into the market for a new pc computer that is specifically designed ONLY for gaming.  I do have no intentions of doing anything like video streaming or content creation or anything like that, JUST gaming.  The most demanding games I currently play are a heavily-modded Skyrim and total war games.  These games are the most taxing on my iMac, and performance really slows down when graphics are turned up high.  I am thinking about building my own pc, and I am just looking for advice about what kind of components I should get for my purposes.  I am not expecting to go into 4k for the foreseeable future, nor do I play a lot of the current AAA titles like Fallout 4 or GTA V on my computer.  Again, heavily-modded Skyrim and the total war games are the most taxing games I play.  If you guys could help out a newcomer consider what parts I should look into buying to build a gaming pc for these purposes, I would really appreciate it.  Thank you.

[Aytex]

[manikyath]

what @Aytex said.

 

aside from that, probably gonna be an i5 or i7 with a bunch of ram and whatever best graphics card your money can buy.

[FoldedGalaxy393]

My budget is probably around $1,000, but I might be able to go up to $1,500 if I had to.

[Streetguru]

My budget is probably around $1,000, but I might be able to go up to $1,500 if I had to.

Here ya go, should pick up this free-sync display with it, but I guess it's pretty much sold out everywhere, there's a 1080p 144hz TN display at the same price as well

http://www.lg.com/us/monitors/lg-29UM67-P-ultrawide-led-monitor

PCPartPicker part list: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/PybqjX

Price breakdown by merchant: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/PybqjX/by_merchant/

CPU: Intel Xeon E3-1231 V3 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor  ($242.99 @ SuperBiiz)

CPU Cooler: NZXT Kraken X31 69.5 CFM Liquid CPU Cooler  ($68.99 @ SuperBiiz)

Motherboard: Asus H81M-D PLUS Micro ATX LGA1150 Motherboard  ($59.99 @ SuperBiiz)

Memory: Crucial 8GB (1 x 8GB) DDR3-1600 Memory  ($35.89 @ OutletPC)

Storage: A-Data Premier SP550 480GB 2.5" Solid State Drive  ($129.99 @ Amazon)

Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive  ($49.98 @ OutletPC)

Video Card: MSI Radeon R9 390 8GB Video Card  ($304.99 @ Micro Center)

Case: Fractal Design Core 1000 USB 3.0 MicroATX Mid Tower Case  ($29.99 @ Micro Center)

Power Supply: Rosewill Hive 650W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply  ($69.89 @ OutletPC)

Total: $992.70

Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available

Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-12-06 23:45 EST-0500

 

[GalacticRuler]

A build like this will crush 1080p and will have the ability to play 4K if you get a monitor for it.

 

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

 

CPU: Intel Core i5-4690K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor  ($219.99 @ SuperBiiz) 

CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler  ($19.99 @ Newegg) 

Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-Z97X-SLI ATX LGA1150 Motherboard  ($92.98 @ Newegg) 

Memory: Kingston HyperX Fury Black 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1866 Memory  ($39.99 @ NCIX US) 

Storage: Samsung 850 EVO-Series 250GB 2.5" Solid State Drive  ($77.99 @ Amazon) 

Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive  ($49.98 @ OutletPC) 

Video Card: Gigabyte GeForce GTX 980 Ti 6GB WINDFORCE 3X Video Card  ($599.99 @ Amazon) 

Case: NZXT S340 (Black) ATX Mid Tower Case  ($59.99 @ Newegg) 

Power Supply: EVGA 850W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply  ($109.99 @ Amazon) 

Total: $1270.89

Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available

Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-12-07 00:04 EST-0500

[Spectator]

 

A build like this will crush 1080p and will have the ability to play 4K if you get a monitor for it.

 

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

 

CPU: Intel Core i5-4690K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor  ($219.99 @ SuperBiiz) 

CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler  ($19.99 @ Newegg) 

Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-Z97X-SLI ATX LGA1150 Motherboard  ($92.98 @ Newegg) 

Memory: Kingston HyperX Fury Black 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1866 Memory  ($39.99 @ NCIX US) 

Storage: Samsung 850 EVO-Series 250GB 2.5" Solid State Drive  ($77.99 @ Amazon) 

Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive  ($49.98 @ OutletPC) 

Video Card: Gigabyte GeForce GTX 980 Ti 6GB WINDFORCE 3X Video Card  ($599.99 @ Amazon) 

Case: NZXT S340 (Black) ATX Mid Tower Case  ($59.99 @ Newegg) 

Power Supply: EVGA 850W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply  ($109.99 @ Amazon) 

Total: $1270.89

Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available

Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-12-07 00:04 EST-0500

 

If you can afford it get this and consider upgrading to a 4790k. 

[g4m3cr34tor]

Something like this will do you just fine and even run AAA titles with absolute ease

 

PCPartPicker part list: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/hh9qjX

Price breakdown by merchant: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/hh9qjX/by_merchant/

 

CPU: Intel Core i5-6500 3.2GHz Quad-Core Processor  ($199.99 @ SuperBiiz) 

CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler  ($19.99 @ Newegg) 

Motherboard: MSI Z170A PC MATE ATX LGA1151 Motherboard  ($89.99 @ Amazon) 

Memory: Corsair Vengeance LPX 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-2666 Memory  ($82.99 @ Newegg) 

Storage: Samsung 850 EVO-Series 250GB 2.5" Solid State Drive  ($77.99 @ Amazon) 

Storage: Seagate Barracuda 2TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive  ($67.88 @ OutletPC) 

Video Card: MSI Radeon R9 390 8GB Video Card  ($289.99 @ Newegg) 

Case: NZXT S340 (Black) ATX Mid Tower Case  ($59.99 @ Newegg) 

Power Supply: XFX XTR 750W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply  ($106.99 @ SuperBiiz) 

Total: $995.80

Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available

Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-12-07 03:46 EST-0500

[FoldedGalaxy393]

Thank you all, this has given me a good starting point, I appreciate your responses!

[0wN3r]

Hey, isn't that the Breaking Bad reference photo here?

[0wN3r]

I would go with i7 5820k, like I did and save up some money on a GPU, going with say 970, since basically Total War is CPU intensive so you might want those extra cores, and Skyrim, even heavily moded, does not really require them 8Gbs of memory [emoji14] Then just a 120Gb ssd like Kingston, and perhaps, Water 3.0 ultimate to overclock that 5820k even further, which does give you pretty nic results!

[FoldedGalaxy393]

If I am going for a build like this, do I need additional fans?  If so, are there any recommendations?

 

CPU: Intel Core i5-4690K Processor 3.5 GHz LGA 1150 BX80646I54690K

CPU Cooling: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO - CPU Cooler with 120 mm PWM Fan

Motherboard: Asus ATX DDR3 2600 LGA 1150 (10Gb/s) Motherboards (Z97-A)

Memory: HyperX FURY 16GB (2 x 8GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1866 Desktop Memory Model HX318C10FBK2/16

Storage: Samsung 850 EVO 250GB 2.5-Inch SATA III Internal SSD (MZ-75E250B/AM)

Storage: Seagate 2TB Desktop HDD SATA 6Gb/s 64MB Cache 3.5-Inch Internal Drive Retail Kit (STBD2000101)

Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 970 4GB SC GAMING ACX 2.0, Graphics Card 04G-P4-2974-KR

Case: NZXT S340 Mid Tower Case CA-S340W-B1 (Glossy Black)

Power Supply: EVGA SuperNOVA 850

 

Thank you!

[Streetguru]

If I am going for a build like this, do I need additional fans?  If so, are there any recommendations?

You should get an i5 4460 if you don't have a 144hz display, it also saves you money on the motherboard

 

and I'd highly recommend a 390 over a 970, it has 125% more VRAM, potentially better DX12/Vulkan Support, a bit more performance especially at higher resolutions, and you save money with a free-sync display in the near future

 

And I wouldn't get a seagate hard drive but that's just me

 

best fans to get are the ones that come in a 4pack for cheap, look for one that comes with 3 pin to molex adapters as well

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835103052